Normalization is the word of the day when describing real estate markets these days. Market recovery has taken hold in most parts of the nation, and as those markets approach prior peaks, price growth may come in line with more normal historical levels. In the short-term, this may mean some metrics exhibit year-over- year declines, but the long-term trend is still higher. While everyone is entitled to their theories, the slow-but-steady path we’ve seen in recent months is beginning to match a pattern we have seen for decades.